Still In Touch With... SAM MAGALEFA

Season’s greetings, Sammy, and we hope you have an awesome year ahead!

Thank you, brother, and same to you.

Quite incredible that you mentioned in the last edition that the financial problems you experienced at Jomo Cosmos drove you to drink. But what we want to ask you is, why do you think almost every generation of the club’s players keeps complaining about being ‘robbed’ financially?

(Pauses) I’m trying to think how I can answer that. Even nowadays, I hear players complaining about money, and this could lead you to say lo baba bamloye ngemali, ukuthi angayikhiphi (this man has been bewitched money-wise, to say he mustn’t spend it). You would say that, straight talk from the street! Because I fail to understand… I thought it happened that time and he (Jomo Sono) would never repeat it, but when I heard (Clifford) Mulenga’s story before he got relegated, where he said they hadn’t been paid for four months, I was like, “Haai maan (No man), there’s something wrong.” It puzzles me to this day as to what makes him stingy with money, whereas he has money. That’s why I’m saying I don’t have an answer, I’m confused. How can the same thing happen with different generations? Because when Mulenga shared the story, I know the story, it happened in front of me and it happened to me too. The way he said it, it sounded exactly like what happened to me. So, is it a coincidence? No, it’s not a coincidence. You can call any other player, different generations, who played at Cosmos, he will tell you the story the way Mulenga put it.

Hmmm…

Mina I feel the downfall of Jomo Cosmos for all these years has always been the money, not the players. He had nice problems. He had the material, but he created his own problems by ukuvala lesandla semali (being thrifty). You can go anywhere, the history of football will absolve Jomo as the best. That is why it’s not easy to even criticise him because in the eyes of people he is an angel, but nobody wants to talk about the other side stories. That is why they say sometimes it’s difficult to go for a superstar and say you are destroying him because he already has support even before you can finish sharing your story. Jomo could have been the best coach here in South Africa winning lot of cups and lots of league titles. Even when he started Midas Cosmos, he had all the material you can think of, but why didn’t he win the league? There’s one thing about players… they have this attitude of being unhappy and they show it with their football. You know he’s got potential, but you can see that maar (but) uSammy maan is not himself, he’s off-form. No, he’s not off-form, he’s playing with this thing in his head that

maar uJomo uyang’kolota yazi (owes me, you know). Your mind needs to be clear of debts, women, kids, etc. It must focus on the game. That’s why we will never reach the standard of English football. Playing with problems? Players can’t even keep up with their performance for at least six months because they have problems. One is having girlfriend problems. His two girlfriends had a fight. That thing affects him on the field because you don’t tell your mind what to think. You focus before you even go to the field. But if you’re going to go to the field with your problems, it will show. It will show that lo mfana umnandi(this boy is talented), but namhlanje angimboni (today I don’t see him). Something is wrong there. We don’t even have psychologists to find out what it is that is eating up Sammy. Kill yourself right now, and when it comes out that you had problems, they will say, “Maar uSammy udom (is stupid), why didn’t he speak?” Sometimes I need someone to come to me and say, “You have changed,

baba. What’s wrong?” You can’t change yourself or make yourself a physio. It doesn’t work like that.

Wow, that’s powerful stuff man!

Mina I had an opportugo nity where I would and tell umagriza (my grandmother). I used to tell her everything, even about my problems with women. That woman, I don’t know where she got the answers. She was not educated. She would come up with a story that would make me feel I wish I could travel with this woman everywhere we went so that when I bumped into a problem, I could tell her about it right at that moment. I never grew up under the care of my parents, I grew up under my grandparents and these people knew what I wanted before I even asked. That’s where I drew my strength from. That’s why I said I was not scared of any player inside the field. I still even remember when Shoes (Moshoeu) came from overseas to play for (Kaizer) Chiefs, I was the person who was roughing him up just so he could know that there’s this guy called Sam my here. He was shocked, he would say, “Hey wena ntwana! Hey! O dlala le mang (Who are you playing with)?” I’d be like, “Sorry, Bra Shoes.” He never came to my side after that. That is why even when I went overseas, I didn’t struggle, I played all the games 90 minutes. That guy (the coach) didn’t know how to speak English, he just said, “Play your football.” Mina I had fun, I had fun. There was another one they said was their best player and had won Player of the Year, but I didn’t even ‘feel’ hi m. It was like I was marking a young kid. I was kicking him from the first minute, and he complained, “New guy, you’re kicking me! I said, “Hey, hey, hey, I’m not here for you wena.” I kept on telling him throughout the game, “I’m from Africa, I’m gonna kick you the whole day.” I frustrated him from the word go and they eventually replaced him. The crowd was complaining, saying, “Ah, you can’t take out that guy!”

Brilliant.

I then got a call from Nasief Morris telling me they had written about me in the papers, sayi ng that people were saying I was too sho rt but I had a big heart. That was a compliment. I had an opportunity of speaking to a guy from France, who was playing for Panathinaikos or something like that. After the game, he came up to me and said, “A re you South African?” I said, “Yes.” He told me, “You are a good player. You remind me of (Claude) Makelele.” Ah, it was a blessing to hear those words and it made me to never stop. I’m happy that (Benedic t) “Tso” Vilakazi even said it… He scor ed in Bloemfontein when we won the COSAFA Cup at home. They put him in as a substitute. The coach, Shakes

Mashaba, decided to convert me from the right to the middle, where I was going to mark (John) Maduka. I kicked Maduka and he kept complaining, “No maan, Sammy maan!” He was so strong, but I made him feel like a kid. He even apologised and said, “Hey man, easy!” I was on top of him. The minute Tso came onto the field, he said, “They say I will be playing with you.” I told him, “You are not playing with me, you will be playing with the strikers. Leave these ones, I will kick both of them.” And it worked. I’m happy that they interviewed him on (Robert) Marawa’s show and he spoke about it. I didn’t even expect it. He said, “I got onto the field and then this guy told me he was going to mark two people.” Even Dikgang Mabalane, he was doing an interview on radio and I told him, “I made you a star wena.” I didn’t even want to shine. Mina I made people who played with me feel comfortable. “Terminator” didn’t mark at right wing when I was playing right back. You can go and watch all the videos, you will never work as long as I play behind you.

Now it’s time to get a little funny. You played in the top division for a decade, turning out for three clubs, and must have met a lot of characters along the way. Who are some of the guys that rank top of the list?

It has to be the late Thomas Madigage, John Moeti, Innocent Ntsume, Ashley Makhanya. But what comes to my mind now is a story involving Chancey Gondwe.

Unfortunately, space is getting the better of us, so let’s get to it next week. Can’t wait for it because if it involves the legendary Chancey Gondwe, we know it’s going to be a cracker.

Ha, ha, ha, yeah, for sure.